Jeff Bezos has announced new guidelines for opinion pages published in the Washington Post.
“We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets,” Bezos wrote on social media platform X. “We’ll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others.”
Bezos revealed the changes on Wednesday by sharing a note he sent to his team.
Bezos added that he believes the topics are underserved in today’s media landscape and he’s excited to “fill that void.”
He also revealed that he offered David Shipley the opportunity to lead the new chapter. Shipley, however, decided to step down after careful consideration, according to Bezos. The search is now underway for a new Opinion Editor.
The Amazon.com founder purchased the Post and other media outlets in 2013 for $250 million following years of news industry challenges.
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Like most newspapers, the Post was losing readers and advertisers as the internet expanded. The paper’s value declined and was forced to cut back on newsroom staff and close several bureaus over the years.
Bezos acknowledged in his note to employees that the internet continues to present challenges for the paper.
“There was a time when a newspaper, especially one that was a local monopoly, might have seen it as a service to bring to the reader’s doorstep every morning a broad-based opinion section that sought to cover all views. Today, the internet does that job,” Bezos wrote.
The change to the opinion pages prompted a positive reaction from X owner Elon Musk, who leads President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Bezos made headlines during the 2024 presidential election when he announced that the Post would not endorse either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris. The Post in a news article reported that the editorial staff planned to endorse Harris but Bezos chose to end the decades-long precedent. Bezos’ decision at the time led to the cancellation of thousands of subscriptions, according to the paper.
Bezos attended Trump’s inauguration in January, sitting alongside other top tech titans including Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Apple CEO Tim Cook.
